


The Meeting

by cynatnite



Series: What Never Happened [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The West Wing
Genre: A little angst, Crossover, Gen, M/M, Snippet, followup to Zoey Bartlet's kidnapping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-18
Updated: 2014-03-18
Packaged: 2018-01-16 06:02:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1334716
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cynatnite/pseuds/cynatnite
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jed Bartlet is taken to a meeting that never happened.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Watched West Wing and saw Clark Gregg.

Normality in the White House did not exist. The Bartlet administration quickly learned this and found they remained almost always in crisis mode with lulls in between. The Zoey Bartlet kidnapping had been the exception to that rule. The nation had never experienced such turmoil or heartache. It was as if it was their own daughter that had been taken in the night.

Coming down off the trauma would be long and difficult. She had been returned safely and no one would be more thankful than her family and her father President Jed Bartlet. The aftermath was a cakewalk even though it meant investigations and hearings afterwards by the Republican congress.

Jed turned lowered the volume just as a congressional hearing was getting underway. Toby Ziegler would have a conniption if he walked into the White House residence with this on the TV. He'd never hear the end of it so Jed turned his attention to the reports in front of him.

The door opened and Charlie stuck his head inside. “Leo is here, Mr. President.”

“Fine, Charlie.”

Leo took the chair across from him and leaned forward. “Mr. President, I need you to come with me for a meeting that’s not going to have ever happened.”

“I’ve been to those meetings, Leo. They suck. Nothing ever happens.”

“This meeting won’t be like the other non-meetings, Mr. President.”

Jed’s eyes locked with Leo’s. “It’s that important.”

“Yes, sir, it is. Subjunction 52.”

“Well, if it’s subjunction 52.” Jed got up and reached for his jacket. He lifted his arms up as he slid it on and followed Leo out the door.

~*~

The trek to the non-meeting was a bit long through the various corridors, turns and whatnot. Once in the basement, the secret service stopped at the doors and Leo led the way to the isolated room at the end of the hallway.

He held the door open for Jed and once inside, two men awaited them. One was the ever-present FBI Agent Mike Casper and the other, a tall black man wearing a patch over one eye.

Jed glanced at Mike. “Mike, how are you?”

“Fine, Mr. President.”

“Mr. President,” Leo began. “This is Director Nick Fury, of SHIELD.”

“No wonder this is a non-meeting.” Jed held out his hand. “It’s good to never have met you, Director.”

“Yes, sir. It’s an honor.” Nick shook his hand.

“I have to admit that I was beginning to wonder if you people ever existed,” Jed told him. “You’re not kidding when you say you keep a low profile.”

“It’s how we like it, Mr. President,” Nick told him.

“SHIELD was given too much freedom to operate if you ask me, Director. I have enough issues with the CIA and the NSA, but your non-existence has always been the bane of my existence since I got this job. I never knew whether to check my coffee grounds for bugs or my underwear drawer.”

“After the discovery of Hydra and their extraordinary technology, some felt that the public wasn’t ready for what we do, Mr. President. I’m inclined to believe that.”

“Your saving grace, Director, is in 1946 your organization was allowed to freely operate around the world as long as it didn’t undermine this country or its interests. The CIA and NSA was wrote a secret law for the occasion. I can only surmise that this has changed given this non-meeting we’re having.”

“Mr. President,” Mike began.

“Is this the part where you tell me what you’re doing here so clandestinely, Agent Casper?”

“Yes, sir. Three years ago I was assigned to the Washington D.C. bureau of the FBI.”

“I know that.”

“No, sir, you don’t.” He folded his hands in front of him. “My real name is Phil Coulson, Mr. President, and I am a SHIELD agent. Director Fury personally assigned me to work in conjunction with your administration.”

Jed was floored. He swung his gaze at Nick. “Since when does SHIELD plant agents…?”

“Sir,” Leo said. “J. Edgar Hoover supported having SHIELD agents working covertly in the FBI and the CIA.”

“Hoover was a paranoid son of a bitch, Leo!” Jed raised his voice. “What the hell are you people doing, Nick?”

“Mr. President, this assists us in making sure toes aren’t stepped on. The CIA, NSA, FBI and SHIELD have some big goddamn toes, sir. In addition to our official liaisons, we felt that agents on the inside would keep things from getting out of hand.”

“Leo, tell me there is a reason why I shouldn’t be having a heart attack right now,” Jed said shaking his head.

“Director, go ahead.”

Nick stepped forward. “The reason why we’re talking, Mr. President, is that we need your help with the CIA. They won’t release specific information without your expressed approval.”

“What is it?”

“One of our people has been taken by Qumari intelligence. We know he’s inside the country, but the location is secret. Our resources are vastly limited in the area.”

“How did he get taken?” Jed asked.

“SHIELD has been working with the CIA and running Ops into the country. My agent had been on the trail of a deadly cell and an extremist cleric. They hit a hot zone, sir, and he was trapped behind enemy lines,” Fury explained.

“Are you sure it’s him?” Jed asked.

“Chatter in the area has increased substantially, Mr. President,” Phil explained. “Our linguists have determined it is an American and he was taken just on the inside of the border not far from his extraction point. As best as we can tell, they don't know who he is or that he's SHIELD.”

“Leo?” Jed asked.

“The CIA’s contact is very high up in Qumari intelligence, sir. If we reveal him to SHIELD, if we didn’t get him out, the government would undoubtedly discover his identity. He and his family would likely be executed. That’s not to mention the added political headaches here at home if it went public.”

“If I allowed the Qumari to keep him, they’ll execute him publicly if they think for one second he's one of ours,” Jed said. “I can’t even acknowledge his existence.”

“There is more, sir,” Phil told him. “This individual was also one of the mercs that was used to kill Shareef.”

“Are you certain of this?” Jed asked.

“I set up the Op,” Fury told him. “It was a four man team. When it was over, we folded them into SHIELD. Two have since been killed, one is back home and the other as we said is sitting in Qumar likely being tortured for information.”

Jed glanced at Phil whose hands were now clenched until the knuckles turned white. He turned his gaze back to Nick. “You people don’t do anything small.”

“Sir,” Phil said. “Would knowing the details of his mission change your mind?”

Fury swung a hard gaze at Phil. “Absolutely not,” he ordered. “We can’t disclose these details without violating the Plausible Deniability Clause of the SHIELD act.”

“Phil, when you show up for work tomorrow morning, are you going to be Phil Coulson, Agent of SHIELD, or Mike Casper, FBI Agent extraordinaire?” Jed asked.

“Mike Casper, Mr. President.”

“Are you Phil Coulson right now during this meeting?”

“What meeting, sir?” Phil answered.

Jed looked from Nick to Leo. “This is why I like him. Agent Mike Casper, I’m ordering you to tell me why a SHIELD operative was operating in Qumar.”

Phil shifted his gaze back and forth before speaking. “The agent was investigating Zoey Bartlet’s kidnapping, Mr. President. His last message indicated that he could identify the mastermind and the cell that pulled it off.”

“Are you kidding me?” Leo asked with wide eyes. He stared hard at Nick. “You didn’t think to tell me before this meeting?”

“No, I didn’t,” Nick replied. “SHIELD missions fall under our jurisdiction and the WSC, Leo. You know that.”

“This is the President’s daughter, Nick!” Leo was furious at the omission. “He has a right to know!”

“He couldn’t know, Leo,” Phil told him. “The President’s objectivity has been in question enough since Zoey’s kidnapping. If this operation were to come to light it could not only undermine the credibility he is trying to rebuild, but also his relations with other powers in the region. It's messy, Mr. President. ”

“Add to that how much the public at large isn't going like seeing their President act like a father and hang every one of those bastards by their entrails before they get a trial,” Jed finished.

“Some will,” Leo muttered.

“Director Fury,” Jed said. “How much Intel will this agent of yours bring back if I were to give up our guy in Qumari intelligence?”

Jed glanced over at Phil. His arms were folded, his eyes down, but there was no mistaking the stress in his stance.

“It’s likely the mastermind of Zoey’s kidnapping might have Intel on other terrorist cells if he's able to direct a complex operation from Qumar. If he’s not above executing the kidnapping of the President of the United States’ daughter, he’ll do anything with the resources currently at his disposal. He’s dangerous, Mr. President.”

“Leo, can we get our guy and his family out if we do this?” Jed asked.

“Him for sure,” Leo answered. “He has a wife and four sons. It won’t be an easy extraction.”

“Any chance the CIA would be willing to work with SHIELD in getting them out?” Jed asked Leo.

“Nancy McNally would have to okay it.”

Nick smiled a little. “Dr. McNally and I go back.”

“You owe me that story,” Jed told Nick. “If this goes public it’s not to come out of the White House. It has to be strictly an NSA and CIA operation. No White House or FBI involvement whatsoever. If it comes out, we are to be as surprised as everyone else. Am I clear?”

“Yes, Mr. President,” Nick said.

Absolutely, Mr. President," Phil added.

Jed clearly detected the relief in his voice. He gave Leo a nod. "Do it."

“Nick,” Leo said. “I’ll have Nancy here in a few minutes.”

As Nick and Leo stepped away, Jed went to Phil. “You know this agent in Qumar.”

“Yes, sir. For a little while now. He’s a good man.”

“You’re worried about him.”

“I had been trying to get him into SHIELD long before this and I knew when I approached him about the mission with Shareef…”

“You knew about it?”

“We knew it was coming, Mr. President. Shooting down the Israeli Prime Minister's plane confirmed it would be happening regardless. Director Fury asked if I knew anyone for hire that would be willing take out Shareef. If word got out about who pulled the job, he and the other mercs would have little to no options. Bringing them into SHIELD was their best chance.”

“And you two became close.”

Phil nodded and smiled a little. “He’s obstinate, opinionated, thinks his way is always better and is adamant about proving himself.”

“I’ll be damned,” Jed said with a hint of a smile. “You’re in love with him.”

“Yes, sir,” Phil admitted easily. “He hasn’t had an easy life, but serving his country and helping people drives him.”

“Would it break protocol if you told me his name?” Jed asked.

“Clint Barton, sir.”

Jed put a hand on Phil’s shoulder. “Once he’s back home with you, send a message through Charlie and let me know how you both are doing. Got that?”

“Yes, Mr. President.”

“I can’t give anyone a medal for going above and beyond, but I can sure as hell make sure you and everyone know that I appreciate the work you’re doing for the country.”

“Thank you, sir.”

When the meeting finished, Jed followed Leo down the long hallway.

“Did you know that Mike…Coulson is involved with the agent in Qumar?”

“Really? I knew he said he was seeing someone. Hell of a thing that he's likely being tortured for information. It's got to be agonizing for Mike, I mean Phil. I hate this covert crap.”

“Not that he’ll let you see it,” Jed said. “What are the chances of getting Barton out of Qumar?”

“With SHIELD and the CIA, better than average, I’d say.”

“We should invite them over for dinner.”

“SHIELD and the CIA?” Leo asked raising his eyebrows. “That would be like inviting Josh and Toby to have dinner with the Republican leadership and not expecting fireworks.”

“No, Phil Coulson and Clint Barton, the agent in Qumar.”

“As if I’d ever let that happen, sir.” Leo shook his head. “Inviting to dinner someone who spies on the FBI and a former mercenary now a SHIELD agent to the White House for dinner.”

“Pish posh,” Jed exclaimed. “We could have Nick Fury and Nancy McNally, too. There is a history and it’s more than eye spy, you spy. It would be the most covert White House dinner in history.”

“You never dream small, Mr. President.”

“You are an old curmudgeon,” Jed stated.

“I thank every day that I am, sir. It keeps me out of your Dating Game crosshairs.”

“For now, I’ll settle for my new favorite couple getting a happy ever after ending.” Jed looked over his shoulder at Phil Coulson who was still standing at the end of the hallway. “They deserve it, Leo.”

“They do, sir.”

 

END

 


End file.
